Captains officials reflect on championship season

The headlines will talk about the Captains players and what they did to win the 2010 Midwest League championship, but a lot of hard work went on behind the scenes.

While the memory of the called third strike to end the game or the players hoisting the trophy into the air will remain, there are coaches and front office personnel that spent countless hours at the ballpark and gave their hearts to this club.

For these individuals, a common theme occurs -- this was about the fans and about the players, not themselves. From owners Peter and Rita Carfagna, to General Manager Brad Seymour, broadcaster Craig Deas and the coaching staff, this was a long-awaited night. To make the night even more special, they all earned their first professional baseball championship.

This magic ride started when the Carfagna and Murphy families purchased the team and moved it to Eastlake for the 2003 season. Since then, players and personnel have come and gone, but one thing remained the same -- the owners' will to win.

"This win is a dream come true -- right here right now," said Peter Carfagna. "Dreams come true, and this is a miracle for us."

His wife Rita added, "It's beyond description, beyond words. We are so happy, not for ourselves, but for our staffs and our players and not to mention Ted Kubiak -- what a superstar. Those kids did a great job under his guidance. It's a moment of pure joy, and we can't be happier for everyone."

It was surely a night for the fans, who witnessed the Captains' first title since they moved to Eastlake in 2003.

"Cleveland has a winner. We have a champion," Peter said. "Maybe it's just A-ball, but we have a champion. The community stepped up, and was that 10th player for us. The fact that we were at home, made a huge difference and swept us to victory tonight."

Rita proudly pointed out the fans who came to the ballpark for the historic win.

"I don't think there are better fans than you find in Lake County. There are so many and we call them super fans, some who are still with us celebrating. They've bonded with these kids, bonded with this team. They've been here through thick and thin and I don't think you can find better fans. This win is for them."

For Seymour, this achievement was even more special because the Captains were playing in the Midwest League for the first time.

"It is extremely special," he said. "The first year in the Midwest League, something we've been trying to get into for years, it just makes it that much more special. I've been doing this for 16 years and this is my first championship. It's great -- a great, great feeling for everybody in the front office. It makes it a little bit more special to do it in front of the home fans."

While the front office remains largely behind the scenes, the coaching staff and their work is scene and judged nearly every day.

In his first year of professional coaching, Mickey Callaway helped mentor a pitching staff that saw its best pitchers get promoted throughout the season.

Callaway though, refused praise. He beamed about the players under his tutelage and the strides they made during the season.

"They did the work," Callaway said. "I made some suggestions at times, but they were unbelievable. I try to preach getting ahead and not walk guys."

"All the time they showed heart all season. They scrapped and clawed their way back. This is a team with a lot of heart. "

Heart, though, can only go so far. The Captains struggled at times, but the pitching seemed to be the one constant -- especially in the postseason. Game in, game out, the starters and relievers made life miserable for the opposing batters.

"They were great," added Callaway. "They stayed relaxed and threw strikes. You can't walk guys and they did a good job of keeping them off the bases. And they did a great job of that. I'm so proud of them."

While much of the focus was on the pitching staff, the offense stepped up during the playoffs and hitting coach Phil Clark should get the credit. He spent hours working with the players to fine tune their swings, and that's one of the things he will remember most about this squad.

"The things that come to my mind are hard work -- from Day 1 to this point in the season," Clark said.

He was quick to point out the consistent hitting of Casey Frawley and Adam Abraham, but also talked about the guys who stepped up in the postseason.

"What stands out most," said Clark, "is guys like Greg Folgia and Jason Smit and a lot of those guys who didn't have the best regular season had a great postseason."

Perhaps nobody summed up what this win means more than Deas.

"I think any time you talk about a championship in the Cleveland area," Deas said, "you think, 'Can we just win something?' We'd take a tiddlywinks championship. We just happen to win professional baseball, and it's just that much better."